GENESEO, N.Y. -- The State University of New York at Geneseo has been named among the most environmentally responsible colleges in the United States and Canada by "The Princeton Review."

Geneseo is included in the organization's 2013 edition of "The Princeton Review's Guide to 322 Green Colleges," published in collaboration with the Center for Green Schools at the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC). It's the fourth year the guide has been published, and Geneseo has been included all four years. The guide coincides with Earth Day April 22.

The guide cites Geneseo's commitment to implementing a number of sustainability initiatives on campus, including the incorporation of geothermal heating in several buildings; and the "Geneseo Gives Back" program, a waste-diversion program that keeps an estimated 15 tons of materials from landfills at the end of every academic year. The guide also commends Geneseo for being the first SUNY school to begin using green cleaning products and recognizes the GEO (Geneseo Environmental Organization) as one of the most active student organizations on campus.

"SUNY's commitment to an energy-smart New York and to sustainability throughout our system is a critical component of our strategic plan, one that our campuses have widely embraced and consistently shown leadership on," said SUNY Chancellor Nancy L. Zimpher. "Congratulations to the eight SUNY campuses listed in the 2013 Guide to Green Colleges. This recognition is much deserved and highly commendable."

The Princeton Review chose the schools based on a survey it conducted of hundreds of colleges across the United States and in Canada in 2012 to tally its "Green Ratings" it reports in school profiles in its annual college guidebooks and website. The survey asked administrators more than 50 questions about their institution's sustainability-related policies, practices and programs. The company reported green ratings for 806 institutions in the summer of 2012. The 322 schools in the guide received scores of 83 or above in that assessment.

"The Princeton Review's Guide to 322 Green Colleges" is a joint effort between The Princeton Review and the USGBC. The Princeton Review is an education services company. It is not affiliated with Princeton University or Education Testing Service.

The U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) is a non-profit organization dedicated to sustainable building design and construction.